


Granger’s Pet Adoption Center

by Never_Stop_Dreaming



Series: California for the Fosters Fics [5]
Category: Black Friday - Team StarKid
Genre: F/M, No beta because what the hell, job searching, just fluff with a hint of angst but not really, tags are a mess
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-08
Updated: 2020-05-08
Packaged: 2021-03-03 01:55:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,592
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24066952
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Never_Stop_Dreaming/pseuds/Never_Stop_Dreaming
Summary: Ethan goes on the search for a job.
Relationships: Hannah Foster & Ethan Green, Lex Foster/Ethan Green
Series: California for the Fosters Fics [5]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1696093
Comments: 3
Kudos: 29





	Granger’s Pet Adoption Center

**Author's Note:**

> Sorry it took so long!

“Ethan? Can you eat my crusts?”

Ethan looked up from the phone book he was reading. Ever since his talk with Lex, he had been trying desperately to find a job. Today’s journey had led them to a small local restaurant for lunch, where the manager had let him look at their phone book for potential job offers. Hannah had ordered grilled cheese with a milkshake, and she seemed to have eaten the grilled cheese down to the crust, a common habit of hers.

“What do you have against the crust? It’s the best part of the sandwich!”

“Too crunchy!”

Ethan rolled his eyes, but reached forward and grabbed her plate anyways, bringing it over to his side and returning his attention to the phone book. He wasn’t one to waste good food. He chewed on the corner of one while he kept reading.

“Any luck?” Hannah ripped open the straw wrapper with her teeth, sticking it into her milkshake and beginning to gulp it down eagerly. She was gulping so fast that Ethan had to stop her.

“Don’t get a brain freeze there, Banana.” He sighed. “Unless you think I would be a good dump truck driver, no.” Hannah considered it for a second before shaking her head, and Ethan chuckled. Hannah picked the cherry off of her milkshake and held it out by the stem to Ethan. He accepted it, popping it into his mouth and spitting the stem into a napkin.

“You’re gonna get a job. Lexie says you will. And Lexie is always right about you.”

Ethan sighed, shutting the phone book and resting his face in his hands. “It’s been two weeks. I’ve found nothing.”

“You will.” Hannah moved over to his side, placing her hand on his arm. “Something’s coming, I can feel it. Things will turn around for you.”

“Lex is counting on me, and I’ve found nothing. If I can’t find a job, what reason does she have to keep me around?”

“She loves you! I love you! Best big brother ever!”

She hugged his arm firmly, eyes blazing. He managed a small smile, patting her hand before turning back to the phone book, hoping that a second look would reveal something.

Suddenly, Hannah looked away, her eyes briefly unfocusing. He furrowed his brows in confusion, but before he could ask her what was wrong, she got up, running to a bulletin board at the front of the restaurant, pulling down a paper and running back with it in her hand.

“Look!”

Ethan took the paper from her hands, holding it up so he could see. It was a soft blue color, black ink with a swooping font.

“Granger Pet Adoption Center?”

“Webby says they’re hiring. You should call them, see if anything’s open.”

Sure enough, at the bottom of the flyer was a phone number. He considered briefly. He didn’t know much about animals, but he always had a sort of soft spot for them. He was willing to work with his hands, and Hannah seemed particularly excited about this opportunity. So finally, he took out his phone, dialing the number and waiting.

“If Webby says so, it must be true,” Ethan teased, tapping her nose with his finger until she giggled, swatting his hand away.

The phone rang for a bit, but finally picked up.

“Hello! Granger Pet Adoption Center, this is Josephine, how may I help you?”

Ethan swallowed nervously, and Hannah rubbed his shoulder.

“Um, hi. My name is Ethan. I heard you might be hiring?”

“Yes! We have a few jobs open. Would you like to come over this afternoon for an interview?”

Ethan could barely contain a sigh of relief.

“That would be great! Is it okay if I bring Hannah? She’s my little sister, and I’m looking after her today.”

“Of course! Let’s meet around 2, Alright?”

“Sounds perfect! Thank you!”

He hung up, and in an instant, Hannah had jumped on him, throwing her arms around his neck and hugging him tightly, giggling with delight.

“You did it! Knew you could!”

Ethan laughed, wrapping his arms around her. “Easy there, Banana, haven’t got the job yet.”

Still, he allowed himself a moment of indulgence. After weeks, this was the first thing that looked promising. He let himself cling onto that hope, even if only for a moment.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

The building was small, between a pizza restaurant and a clothing store. But it stood out, the bricks painted a bright blue with faux paw prints climbing up the side to the sign above that read “Granger Pet Adoption Center.” 

“Pretty!” Hannah exclaimed, already running up to the door and throwing it open. Ethan could barely contain a grin. Hannah hadn’t been this excited about anything in weeks. It was refreshing to see her so engaged, so active.

He came inside to find Hannah already at the desk, talking to a woman at the reception desk. She had a braid of silver hair down her back, and brown eyes surrounded by smile wrinkles. Hannah was talking to her excitedly, bouncing on her toes. 

“Oh! You must be Ethan!” The woman stood from her desk, extending her hand to Ethan. He shook it, nodding, and managing a smile in return.

“You must be Josephine?”

“Yes! And I assume this is the sister you were talking about? She’s a lovely little thing!”

Hannah beamed, burying her face into Ethan’s jacket.

“Well, follow me. I can talk to you in my office.”

Her office was just as bright as the rest of the building. In the corner, there was a pet bed with a large cat, a litter of kittens snuggled up with her. Josephine pulled out a chair for Ethan, gesturing for him to sit across from her. She smiled when she saw Hannah, who’s wide eyes were fixed on the kittens.

“You can play with them, if you’d like. As long as you don’t mind the occasional scratch from a kitten.”

Hannah was down on her knees next to the pet bed in an instant, reaching inside to scratch one of the kittens behind the ears. Josephine gave her one last smile before turning her attention to Ethan.

“So, our old receptionist had to quit, and we’re looking for a new one. Basically if you got the job, you would be at the front desk, answering phone calls, faxing, keeping things organized, all that. But, you will still get some valuable time with the animals! There’s a lot of chance for an eventual promotion if I see fit. Our old receptionist was promoted, which is why we need a new one! How much experience do you have with animals?”

Ethan laughed nervously, rubbing the back of his neck. “I like them. I haven’t been around them a lot, but I’m willing to learn.”

“Well, that’s the attitude we’re looking for!” Josephine exclaimed. Ethan smiled in relief. He was just about to say something when Hannah scampered up, arms full of kittens and displaying them proudly.

“She’s a smart little thing, isn’t she?” Josephine said with a smile. “She’s your sister?”

“Well… not biologically, but in every other way, yeah. She’s my girlfriend’s sister.” 

Josephine looked over them again, eyes soft, before reaching into the drawers of her desk and pulling out a file.

“If you’d like to give the job a try, just sign here to start next week. You work weekdays from 8 to 5. Three hundred dollars a week. And if you don’t fit, we can always let you go.”

He couldn’t sign those forms fast enough.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

It was late at night when Lex got home that night. 

Hannah was sound asleep in her room, and Ethan had changed into pajamas, laying down on the couch and watching TV. He flipped it off when he heard the door opening, a sign that Lex had just arrived home. She took off her shoes, threw off her hoodie, and headed over to the couch. Much to Ethan’s surprise, she was smiling, brown eyes sparking.

“I heard somebody got a job today.” She climbed into his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck and resting her head on his shoulder. He smiled, kissing her forehead.

“Yup. Pay is pretty decent. Work hours are good. I have weekends off.”

She stroked his hair, and he leaned into the touch. She giggled softly, nuzzling his cheek.

“Are you happy with it?”

“I think so.”

“Good.”

She pulled him close, kissing him slowly, warmly. He sighed in contentment, wrapping his arms around her waist. They lay there for a bit, just kissing softly, hands rubbing soothing circles.

“I can quit two of my jobs. And we need to start looking for a school for Banana,” she mumbled between kisses.

“Can she handle it? You know how timid she got around new people in Hatchetfield.” He nuzzled his face into her neck, allowing his eyes to slip shut. It was a favorite spot of his to cuddle up against. Her neck was warm and safe, and it was a comfort to take in her scent.

“I hate it too, but she can’t stay with us forever. And I want her to have a secure future. She has to learn to socialize somehow. I can babysit her while you’re at work until we can get her enrolled.”

He hummed in agreement, face still buried in her neck. Her fingers curled in his hair.

“I’m proud of you, babe.”

And those words sent a warm feeling to his chest that he was just beginning to learn.

Hope.

**Author's Note:**

> Comments give me life! Also, if you have any requests, hit me up!


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